Commercial Real Estate Brokers – Key Questions Convert More Business

In commercial real estate and investment property, it is highly productive for you as a Real Estate Agent or Broker to have a questioning strategy for each and every property type and process. The questions you ask need to be directed within the commercial property sales, leasing, or property management specialization. They should also be specialized within Office Property, Retail Property, Industrial Property, and any other unique property types you work on.

The questions asked between these properties can and should be very different. As simple as the process seems, most real estate agents and brokers are very basic in the questioning process. They have little depth to the types of questions and dialogue they can create. Improve yourself and you will improve your business.

Having been involved in many sales pitches at the highest level of the property industry, I can tell you that knowledge and market information supported by your direct key questions unique to the property type will make you stand alone as the agent of choice. Quality questions and dialogue will make you better than the rest of your competition.

So what can you do here? You can create a simple set of focused questionnaires and trigger points to use as appropriate in a client or customer dialogue. Everyone carries a marketing folder or listing folder; you just need to put the information in the folder for you to use at a moment’s notice. The information becomes your tool of trade just like any other specialist or professional in business. They also become extremely effective in helping you with the listing conversion.

Even the very best of us in the industry and who have been around for many years, will be assisted by a direct list of key questions relative to the property type.

In many cases, you may only get one chance to interview the client; your intelligence and relevance to the client should be displayed and supported by high level relevant discussion. Normally speaking, it is difficult for most people to pull on this information without some form of checklist and perhaps a summary or list of market trends and results.

So here are some other key questions as part of your strategy to open the door on the discussion:

Tell me about the current property situation and where you would like to head?

What about the future of the property for you?

What influenced you to purchase the property in the first place?

What do you believe are the most significant selling points or highlights of the property?

If you could change anything over the last few years in the property, what would it have been?

What budget do you have in mind to achieve the sale or lease?

What is the critical time frame for the process of sale or lease?

What is the most important outcome from the property sale or lease?

Who are the decision makers and those who are most concerned with the marketing of the property and the successful result? This question is relevant when you are presenting to a corporate person.

If we could bring you a successful transaction today, on what terms and conditions would it be attractive to you?

On what basis do you believe the property should be promoted to its target market?

Has this property been promoted in any way or form over recent time and how was that done? What was the result?

From these questions you can drill down into very specific information such as the property description, location factors, and performance factors. You can then show your knowledge to the client.

By implementing a powerful questioning strategy with the client or prospect, you will achieve high impact relevant discussions. This makes it much easier to convert the listing when you know which path or direction the client wants to take.